For the first time in nearly eight years, Johnny Depp is heading back to the big screen. And the role he is taking on is one of the most beloved characters in all of classic literature.
Depp will play Ebenezer Scrooge in an upcoming film called Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol. Joining him on screen are Ian McKellen and Rupert Grint, among others. It is quite a cast.
McKellen Has Only Good Things to Say
In a recent interview with Variety, McKellen opened up about what it was like working with Depp on set. His verdict? He could not have been more enthusiastic.
“He’s in spankingly good form. Effervescent, funny, irreverent, serious, all at the same time. It was a bit of a love fest, really. I fell in love with him.”
McKellen also said Depp was generous toward his fellow actors. “He’s very obliging to his fellow actors,” McKellen told Variety. “There was a wonderful feeling on the set.”
A Long Road Back to Hollywood
This marks Depp’s first major film since 2020, when he lost a libel case against the British newspaper The Sun. The paper had called him a “wife beater” in connection with allegations made by his ex-wife Amber Heard. The judge in that case, Justice Andrew Nicol, ruled the description was “substantially true,” finding that 12 of the 14 alleged incidents of domestic violence had occurred.
A separate 2022 case in the United States involved Depp and Heard suing each other for defamation. A jury found both of them liable.
Those legal battles kept him out of the spotlight for years. Now, with a new film and a glowing endorsement from one of the most respected actors of our time, Depp appears to be making a real comeback.
More Work on the Way
Depp is not stopping with Scrooge. He also has a role in an upcoming film called Day Drinker, where he will appear alongside Penélope Cruz.
If you were a fan of Depp back in his Pirates of the Caribbean days, it sounds like his return to the screen is well worth watching for.